COVID-19 May 14th, 2020 Update
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- Thank You Operators!
- Government of Ontario: Clarification on seasonal parks and campgrounds announcement
- Government of Canada: Regional Relief and Recovery Fund - Support for tourism and seasonal businesses
- Marinas and Boat Launches: Tips for the long weekend
- TIAO Survey
- New Preferred Suppliers Updates Page!
- New Features on NOTO's COVID-19 Page
- Destination Canada's Webinar
- Reminder: Opportunity to Remove Red Tape!
We will continue to strive to bring forward pertinent information to the tourism industry as it becomes available. We will also do our best to find answers to your questions. Do not hesitate to contact us. We are here for you.
NOTO Contact Emails:
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To All Operators - Thank You!
The NOTO staff and Board of Directors would like to take this opportunity to thank all the operators who take time to read through our newsletters, answer all of the surveys, participate in the webinars and industry conference calls, and share with us how they are doing and the various strategies and resources they've found that help them weather this storm.
We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of the NOTO members who continue to support us during this difficult time. Being a membership-based organization during these times is not easy. It is the passion and the support from our valuable members which allow us to continue to work, advocate, and provide vitally important information services to operators across the province during this time.
We want to wish a warm welcome to our newest NOTO members (April/May):
- Lac Seul Evergreen Lodge
- Cygnet Lake Camp
- Moose Haven Lodge
- Loon Haunt Outposts
- Houseboat Adventures
- Bruce Bay Cottages & Lighthouse
- Tang of the North
NOTO continues to advocate on your behalf to ensure that the resource-based tourism is recognized by Government and push for supports that will help our seasonal businesses who have not qualified for the other Provincial and Federal supports announced to date. We also continue to communicate with countless Northern MPs and MPPs and the Canadian Border Security Agency to ensure that our American business owners will be able to come across the border to check on their properties and prepare for the season. In addition to our advocacy work, NOTO staff works countless hours to ensure that all operators remain informed on the latest developments surrounding the state of emergency, the emergency orders that remain in place, border closure updates, information and resources, Government supports as well as advice.
We also continue to strengthen the voice of tourism by working with other sector organizations such as Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO), Canadian Federal of Outfitter Associations (CFOA), Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC), Indigenous Tourism Ontario (ITO), and countless other tourism sector partners and associations.
We are stronger together and for this, we thank you all!
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Provincial Government: Clarification on Today's Seasonal Parks and Campgrounds Announcement
Today, the Premier announced the beginning of Phase 1 of the Ontario's Framework to Reopening the Province. This announcement include the opening of golf courses, marinas, private parks and campgrounds as early as Saturday. However, there are
various restrictions surrounding the opening
of these businesses.
The Government has specified that as soon as 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, May 16, 2020:
- Golf courses will be able to open, with clubhouses open only for washrooms and restaurants open only for take-out.
- Marinas, boat clubs and public boat launches may open for recreational use.
- Private parks and campgrounds may open to enable preparation for the season and to allow access for trailers and recreational vehicles whose owners have a full season contract.
- Businesses that board animals, such as stables, may allow boarders to visit, care for or ride their animal.
What does this mean for operators:
Under
Short Term Rentals in the Essential Services List,
all camps and lodges
can not be open
unless they are providing a place for an Essential worker to self isolate. As for seasonal campgrounds/trailer parks, you can not open broadly! As of Saturday, May 16th, you can allow seasonal trailer guests that have full season contracts access to their trailers. You may also prepare your campground for re-opening at a later date. All other facilities must remain closed. We will be watching for any further clarification. Other stipulations surrounding campgrounds will be added to the
essential services list
shortly. Operators are highly encouraged to keep an eye on this page as we enter the long weekend! Any operator caught in non-compliance with ANY emergency order will
face serious fines
!
For those with marinas/boat launches, you will be able to open for the long weekend, however, the Ministry of Labour will expect you to have enhanced health and safety measures in place to ensure the safety of your employees and clients. More on this later in this newsletter.
The state of emergency
has been extended to June 2nd. As of right now, the following emergency orders that impact our industry remain in place:
The government also launched a website to provide businesses with information on personal protective equipment (PPE) suppliers. The
Workplace PPE Supplier Directory
has an up-to-date list of Ontario companies and business associations that are ready to supply personal protective equipment.
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Federal Government Announcement:
Regional Relief and Recovery Fund!
Long-awaited support for tourism and seasonal businesses has finally arrived! The Government of Canada has announced the
Regional Relief and Recovery Fund.
to support small businesses including tourism and seasonal businesses who were not able to access other Federal Programs. $962 million will be made available through Canada's Regional Development Agencies. The RDA for Northern Ontario is
FedNor.
If you are an operator in Southern Ontario (any region south of the Nipissing, Parry Sound and Muskoka Districts), you would need to apply for the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund through
FedDev
.
FedNor will work with Community Futures Development Corporations (CFDCs) across the region to help businesses get through these difficult times. A total of $49.5 million will be available for the FedNor region’s businesses. Out of this $49.5 million, FedNor will be delivering $24 million through its Regional Economic Growth through Innovation Program. Applicants are eligible to receive up to 100% of total eligible bridge support costs, covering up to a 6-month period. This fund will provide repayable and conditionally repayable contributions to eligible small and medium sized businesses to a maximum of $250,000. However, if you have received financial support from BOTH the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy AND any other Government of Canada COVID-19 business credit support program (Business Credit Availability Program, Canada Emergency Business Account, loans from Community Futures Development Corp.), you will not be eligible for the RRRF.
Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:
- Businesses such as: incorporated companies, corporations or co-operatives, or Indigenous organizations such as Indigenous/First Nation/Métis Settlement owned businesses, that:
- Are located or operating in Northern Ontario;
- Do not qualify or have been rejected from, current Government of Canada COVID-19 relief supports or demonstrate the need for incremental support;
- Employ between 1 and 499 individuals on a full-time basis in Canada; and
- Are negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Not-for profit organizations, such as Chambers of Commerce, Industry or Sector Associations, and Tourism organizations:
- Based in Northern Ontario and/or offer support to businesses located in Northern Ontario; and
- Carry out commercial activities, and that are postioned to support SMEs regarding COVID-19.
Ineligible Applicants through the FedNor stream include:
- Sole proprietorships or partnerships;
- Businesses operating in the following sectors:
- Retail (i.e. convenience stores, gas stations, clothing stores)
- Accommodation (i.e. hotel, motel, bed and breakfast)
- Food and Beverage (i.e. restaurants, chip stands, juice stands)
- Professional Services (i.e. lawyers, doctors, dentists)
Eligible costs for those who meet the eligibility requirements are retroactive to March 15, 2020. Eligible costs include, but are not limited to the following:
- Commercial Rent / Mortgage (rent is only eligible if not supported by the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance program);
- Rent or lease of equipment and machinery;
- Salaries and benefits (only eligible if not eligible or rejected through the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy);
- Property taxes;
- Utilities;
- Cleaning supplies;
- Additional safety measures;
- Bank interest/charges and loan repayment (interest);
- Office supplies;
- Vehicle operating expenses;
- Professional fees;
- Insurances, and
- Other fixed overhead costs and one-time stabilization expenditures.
Northern Ontario's 24 Community Futures Development Corporations will deliver $25.5 million in RRRF support directly to small businesses and entrepreneurs in rural areas. Each CFDC is responsible for managing its own application and selection process in accordance with the
parameters set out in the RRRF
.
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Marinas and Boat Launches
The Government has specified that as soon as 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, May 16, 2020, marinas, boat clubs and public boat launches may open for recreational use. Additional stipulations may be added to the
essential services list
as we approach the long weekend. Operators are highly encouraged to keep an eye on this list to ensure they comply with this emergency order. To ensure that you comply with the Ministry of Labours enhanced health and safety expectations, we recommend the following:
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- Place signage to remind people of social distancing requirements. You can use the Government of Canada's signs for on-land reminders and Transport Canada's social distancing while boating signs.
- If you have an office, place social distancing markers on the floor to ensure spacing and consider limiting the amount of people who can come into the area at any one time (ex: limit of 5 people inside the building, one member per household, etc.)
- Have hand sanitizer or a hand washing station near the entrance.
- Encourage the use of credit/debit (tap) or e-transfers instead of cash. Have disposable popsicle sticks or cotton swabs that people can use to click the buttons on the terminal if they do not have tap on their cards.
- Encourage the use of gloves and masks for staff serving customers at the counter.
- Sanitize counter, door handles, and payment terminal frequently.
- Have clients launch their boats and immediately park their vehicle and move their boat away from the launch to allow other clients to use the launch in a timely matter.
- Have a staff member control the movement of individuals to the boats and on docks.
- Clients should responsible for loading/unloading their boats as well as any other equipment they have.
- Close all common areas (parks, picnic areas, beaches etc.) in compliance with the essential services list.
- Ensure garbage and recycling containers have bags and are regularly changed and sanitize any handles.
- Consider closing public washrooms or increase cleaning frequency of washroom facilities and post signage of hygiene best practices (wash your hands for 20 seconds, cough in sleeves, etc.)
- Encourage guests to bring their own fuel.
- TSSA regulations state that only marina staff can fuel a vessel and all non-staff individuals must be off the boat before fueling can begin. In this case, place a social distancing marker where all non-staff individuals must stand while staff fuel the vessel. Have staff wear disposable gloves while fueling vessel and have staff immediately dispose of the gloves and wash their hands once the service is complete.
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TIAO's COVID- 19 Survey 5.0
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Please take a few minutes of your time to listen to Alex's video on why data collection is critical during these difficult times and participate in TIAO's 5th survey.
We know it can feel as though answering the same questions in these surveys is an exercise in futility, but this data really does matter because what you are experiencing matters.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourism businesses is unprecedented and Government consistently requests to view numbers to support our asks. The impacts that you report through all the surveys conducted by various tourism associations allow us to tell all levels of government what tourism businesses and operators need to survive this crisis.
Data tells a powerful story, and it is making a difference.
Survey closes Tuesday May 19th.
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Messages and Special Offers from our Preferred Suppliers!
We're happy to announce the official launch of our Preferred Supplier Updates page!
Our Preferred Suppliers want you to know that they are here for your during this difficult time. Many have messages they would like to share with you and many of our Preferred Suppliers have set up discount programs and special offers to help you get ready as the province moves towards re-opening the economy.
This page will be regularly updated as well as our Preferred Suppliers continue to provide us with messages and special offers.
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New Features on the COVID-19 Page
As I'm sure you have all noticed, there is a vast collection of information and updates that operators can access on NOTO's COVID-19 webpage. However, due to this vast collection of information, it can make it difficult for operators to determine what's new and what has changed without looking through the entire webpage.
Thanks to a wonderful suggestion from one of our members, NOTO has created a "What's New" section where we highlight what has changed in terms of information and what new resources have been included for easy access! We hope this will help operators navigate the webpage and make it more user-friendly!
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Cleaning/Personal Protective Equipment
As the province continues to take strides to reopen the economy, NOTO wants to ensure that our operators have everything they need to meet the new health and safety standards that will be expected by the Ministry of Labour.
We are putting together a new section on our NOTO COVID-19 page where operators can find a list of businesses that can provide you with personal protective equipment and cleaning products.
To help us create this resources list, we would love to hear which suppliers you regularly deal with or businesses you know that have these products available.
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Destination Canada Webinar
If you were unable to attend Destination Canada's webinar, you can watch it by clicking on the video link below.
The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages, provided a great update on Government initiatives to date and some positive news for the tourism industry and seasonal businesses. She is very passionate about the tourism industry and she has been a great champion for our industry as the Federal Government developed the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund.
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REMINDER: Opportunity to Remove Red Tape Within the Industry
The Ontario government has launched the
COVID-19: Tackling the Barriers
website. Businesses working to reconfigure their operations, or those struggling to operate in this new environment can submit any potential roadblocks and suggest possible solutions through the website.
We encourage operators to take this opportunity to recommend changes to regulations with unnecessary red tape, regardless of the COVID-19 situation. This can be in relation to water sampling testing requirements, septic systems, the gas tax rebate, a temporary extension to the bear hunt season as a result of the potential loss of the spring bear hunt, etc. Many items cause many operators to spend a lot of their revenues to comply with regulations overwhelmed with red tape. Any changes brought forward would not only help operators save money in the short term, but may lead to some long term changes.
We also encourage you to echo NOTO's recommendation to have all LUP, BMA and other provincially administered fees waived for 2020. You can also take this opportunity to comment on the lack of support to the industry as a result of eligibility requirements or the seasonal aspect of your businesses.
Please share your submissions with Laurie (
laurie@noto.net
) so that we can include all your ideas in future advocacy efforts.
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NOTO's COVID-19 Page
This page was created to keep you informed on the latest developments that may impact/help your businesses. This page features links to our COVID-19 newsletters, Government resources, information that may be useful to tourism operators and links to supports for tourism operators as they become available. This page will be updated regularly during this pandemic.There are FAQ's with answers and tips from NOTO. FAQs will be regularly updated as well.
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Federal & Provincial Government Information
The Ontario and Federal Governments are regularly updating COVID-19 information, travel information, Minister statements, Government initiatives and statistics on their websites. For additional information from the Ontario or Federal Government, please click on the buttons below.
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NOTO is a membership based organization that works hard to support the outdoor tourism industry through advocacy and information services. We do not receive Government funding for operating and rely on annual memberships from tourism businesses, organizations, product and service suppliers, and partners. For more information about membership with NOTO visit
noto.ca
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